Alternate Ever After
Prologue Come on Friends! Let me tell you a story. This story is about Ever After High, but not the Ever After High you know. Mom, Dad? I think you might need to back up a few pages because I have no idea what you're talking about. '''Brooke, just listen. This is a very interesting tale... For deep within the school, lies a mirror, a mirror that can allow one to see an alternate world. A mirror that no one knows about, except for Baba Yaga. But for this tale, I think we can make an exception... Chapter one In the other world, live goes on pretty much the same as ours does. And faraway from the mainland of Ever After, on a craggy cliff over a wind-tossed sea, lies a castle. And in this castle, Apple Queen was packing. '''Huh? '''Alternate World Brooke! She blasted One Reflection's new song from her Mirrorpod, dancing while gathering clothes from her wardrobe and depositing them in her trunk. The heap was entirely purple and black so she threw in a pair of silver sandals to add color. A foghorn bellowed, calling her to dinner. Apple pulled on a purple sweater as she left her room. Her home was chilly. Too many of the room were unoccupied to bother lighting fires in every fireplace. As Apple stared at the shadows, she couldn't help but remember a time when the castle had teemed with servants, soldiers and creatures of the shadows, all waiting to tattle on Apple to her mother if they ever caught her doing anything kind. For example... "Apple!" Her mother would say. "Ooglot the ogre heard you apologize to a rat for stepping on it's tail. Such behaviour must stop!" "But I didn't mean to step on it's tail." Apple would defend herself. "Not that my girl! The apology! The Evil Queen never apologizes for anything. You need to learn that now." Apple liked having the castle mostly empty. She tucked a strand of her purple streaked blonde hair behind her ear and entered the dining room, announcing a loud: "I'm here!" As usual, the only people there were Apple, her father, Cook, and Cook's four year old sons. 'Apple!" Butternut and Pie exclaimed. They had hair as orange as Butternut's namesake and faces as round as Pie's. "Hey little cooklings." Apple said "I made this for you." Pie said, pushing a piece of paper over to her. Apple held out a picture of herself, done in yellow, purple, and black. "Wicked cool. Thank you." Apple said. Apple's father, the Good King, kissed her forehead when she sat beside him. His trimmed beard was beginning to gray and the top of his head was totally bald, as if the hair had made room for the gold crown he rarely bothered to wear. His eyes were bright blue and brightened even more when he smiled, which was often. "All packed?" He asked. She nodded. "Warm coat? Rain boots? Enchanted umbrella?" He asked. He received a nod for each item. "Now don't you stay all cooped up in here without me. Cook, make sure he gets outside, goes sailing and fishing." She instructed the chef. "Of course, now dinner, I made roast duck." Cook said hopefully. "I'll just have a princess pea-butter sandwich please." Apple said, hiding a giggle as Butternut made a face at her. "Of course." The cook said, rolling her eyes. "Thank you." Apple said, and then winced automatically. But her mother wasn't there to scold her for being nice. Her father must have noticed her wince because he placed a comforting hand on her shoulder and smiled. "My meat is cold." Pie complained, pushing it around. "I can warm it up for you." Apple smirked, wiggling her fingers as if prepping to cast a spell. "No!" Her father yelled. Apple laughed. "Oh my goodness girl, you had me for a moment." Her father sighed, pressing his hand to his heart as he sat down. A few years before, Apple had tried to reheat her father's meal and ended up setting the entire table on fire. (Purple fire but fire just the same). She wouldn't make that mistake again. Dark magic+good intentions=catastrophe. Which actually explained a lot. "Cook thank you so much for a perfect dinner, Apple, would you?" The good king cocked his head to the door. Apple's stomach felt as if she had swallowed a boulder, but nodded as she followed him outside. Once in the hall, her father whispered: "It's time Apple, if you'd rather not.." He trailed off. "No, I can go talk to her." She assured him. "I'll go with you." He offered. "Dad, I'm fifteen now. That should be old enough to face Mother alone." She assured him, taking a deep breath and began the long walk to the Queen's wing in the other side of the castle for the first time in a year. Colors dimmed, dark wood walls, scarlet and black carpets, and purple curtains. Monstrous statues seemed to watch Apple as she passed. Portraits looked down. Her mother smiling, her mother not smiling, a close up of her mother's nose. In one her mother was winking. And in all of them, she was beautiful. Drapes and curtains rustled where there was no draft. Apple's forehead prickled with cold sweat. When she got in sight of her mother's old bedroom, she stopped. She dusted off her black and silver domed skirt, adjusted her purple sweater, took a deep breath and entered the room. Two guards stood inside by the door. "Keep away from the glass." One ordered. "I know." Apple assured them. She entered the room and ripped the velvet cloth off the only piece of furniture, a standing mirror. "Mirror Mirror on the wall, um, show me my mother." The Mirror no longer required a rhyme to work, rhyming was so last chapter. Purple energy streaked across it's silver surface. Slowly her mother appeared. She had black hair with purple highlights and wore a striped prison jumpsuit. "Apple darling, is that you? Your so...beautiful. Ah my dear! You're going to give that fair-skinned blood-lipped brat a run for her money!" Her mother proclaimed. Apple gulped and drew a lock of hair out from behind her ear, letting it fall over half her face. "Hey mother, how's you know, Mirror prison?" She asked. "Meh." Her mother said dismissively. "Tell me all the gossip my girl! What's been happening in Ever After? Has someone else copied me and tried to take over all the kingdoms? Is your father still a mind numbing excuse for a man?" She asked. Apple clenched her fists. 'Don't make fun of my dad!' She wanted to shout. But she meant her mother's eyes in the mirror, took a deep breath, and looked back down. "Everything's pretty much just like last year, and the year before." Apple said. "Hah! See what happens when I'm gone? ''Nothing! ''I hope you learn from this, darling. You have to go out there and force life what you want it to be, just like i did." The Evil Queen triumphantly proclaimed. "Yeah." Apple said. Her mother did make her childhood interesting, she'd give her that. Quality time with Mother included sitting on her lap while the queen meant with her generals and hatched plots to kill, conquer and rule, or helping mother in the dungeon workshop, coughing on smoke and making toxic potions and evil spells. Apple's thoughts were interrupted by her mother. "So, ready for you legacy year? Ready to sign yourself to the storybook of legends and bind yourself to follow in my footsteps?" She asked, inspecting her nails. Apple shrugged, "Why you should be eager to be the next Evil Queen! Why your legacy is one of power control and command! Just think you..." "Could have been born to one of those pathetic princesses who have to sit in a tower and wait to be rescued. Or worse, get's suckered into eating a poisoned apple." Apple finished up, ending the spiel she had heard countless of times before. "Humph! You listen well." Her mother sniffed. Apple shrugged. "I guess, I just,.." She trailed off. "What? Stop mumbling and speak up like a queen. Now, what were you saying?" Her mother asked. Apple straightened her shoulders. "Nothing, never mind." She said. "Don't be so timid! This will be your chance to show those dull good folk what it is you're made of." Her mother scolded. "I'll try." She cracked a small smile. "I'm so proud. Oh I miss you, my beautiful baby girl. Let me touch you, even if it's only though glass." Her mother begged, placing one hand on the mirror. Apple raised her hand involuntarily. Her mother loved her, in her way, and she wanted a part of that. But she realized what she was doing and gripped her hand with the other and glued them to her side. That wasn't the actual mirror prison. That was far away and locked up tight. But her mother was such a powerful sorceress, she might be able to take Apple's hand even through a viewing portal. "I love you mother, but I will not help you escape." Apple said. Her mother groaned and let her hand drop. "If you were as evil as I raised you to be Apple, you would not hesitate. I must say, I'm a little disappointed. Never mind! I shall watch with interest to see what you accomplish. You have inherited a bottomless capacity for true evil and breathtaking power. Give 'em hex Apple." The time clicked off before Apple had to respond. Instead of her mother's face, Apple saw her own. Except for the hair, it was remarkable how much they looked alike. Chapter two Raven White threw open the pink silk curtains even wider to let in all the buttery sunshine. '''What? '''Brooke! For the last time this is an alternate world! Anyway, Raven's large bedroom teemed with servants in matching white uniforms, dwarves running errands and friendly woodland creatures. A robin hovered before her, a red slipper in it's beak. "Yes pack that one. In fact, let's just pack all my shoes shall we?" Raven said sweetly. The chorus of birds in her shoe closet tweeted and carried the shoes to her trunk. "Not the blue ones." She called to a squirrel in her sock drawer. "The white ones if you please." She heard a few strands of one of Tailor Quick's songs and knew she had received another hext message. This one was from Maddie Beauty. Raven typed with one hand while brushing her black waves with the other. Her hair never seemed to need brushing, but she was an overachiever. Maddie: Raven! When will you get to Ever After High? Raven: My father is prepping the hybrid carriage now. Should be there in a few short hours. Maddie: Hexcellent! Am planning a Book-to-School Party. Gonna be a page ripper! Raven: I'm there. Charm you later. "Snoozy! Snappy!" Raven called to her dwarf lackeys. "The first four trunks are ready to go. Would you be so kind as to carry them down? You too Pouty, don't you stick out that bottom lip you silly." Raven commented. "My name's not Pouty." Frank said poutily. "Careful with that one Sloppy!" Raven called cheerfully. "My name is Phil." Sloppy grumbled. "You sillies!" Raven giggled. She heard cheers from her balcony and walked out to it. At the sight of Raven the cheers grew louder. In the courtyard below, people from the villaige had gathered, many wearing I <3 Raven shirts. "My dear subjects you are simply, unquestionably perfect!" She announced, tossing candy and coins from the basket on her balcony. She always kept it there. One never knew when there would be adoring crowds. "No you are perfect!" And the cheering renewed. Two doves flew above Raven, holding a long red ribbon in their beaks. A message, most likely from her mother, was stitched across it. "We love you Raven! Embrace your destiny!" ''Destiny ''She was beginning her Legacy Year, the first step in achieving her Happily Ever After. She couldn't wait. She strode down to the courtyard where her parents waited like the ideal king and queen. Her mother's hair was still curled under her golden crown, her skin still as pale as snow, her lips as red as blood. She was as beautiful now as she had been when a magic mirror named her the fairest of them all. Her father stood behind his wife, one hand on his sword hilt, always ready to do battle. (Even though he actually never did any battle, All he did was fall in love with a comotose girl in a glass coffin. But he did look regal with that sword). "This is a royally important year." Her mother's voice was high and a little squeaky, as if all the time spent in the woods with squirrels had taken it's toll. "I am so proud of you my little Blackbird. I know you will prepare yourself to be the perfect Snow White." She said as her father helped her into the carriage. The servants all nodded. Raven blushed. They must have noticed how dedicated she was to her subjects, how hard she had been studying Kingdom Management, all the time she put into preparing to be a queen.. "Just look at her hair, her skin." A maid whispered. "I did not think it was possible, but she is becoming more beautiful than her mother." A guard whispered back. "So beautiful, the perfect Snow White." Raven held her breath and waited for what was coming. What always followed that remark. "Well, except for her lips." And there it was! Raven's lips were not,as the fairytale specified, as red as blood. They were a purple color unless she spent half an hour applying red lipstick over them. It seemed like such a trivial thing, but her servants didn't think so. "Listen the lips don't matter." Oh, they were talking again. "Her eyes, her nose, her hair, that profile! She is the definition of beauty." Raven turned her face to the window. Surely Snow White was about more than looking pretty and having blood red lips. Legacy year would be her year, the beginning to her story. But she wasn't just setting out to prove she was pretty enough to be Snow White. She was going to prove she could rule like her. Chapter three '''Will you please tell me what's going on now? Brooke, in this world, the Villains are Heros The Royals are Rebels And some scattered changes in between So it's basically an Alternate World?Why didn't you just tell me that at the beginning? Argh! Alright Brooke, just, during this story, don't think too much on it. I won't Mom. I pretty much do that with every story anyway. I will ignore that comment for the sole reason I want to continue this story. Chapter four Apple hugged her father one last time, then stepped through the travel mirror. She ended up on a high balcony by Ever After High. She grabbed a banister to keep from falling again. Journey by mirror felt like her insides were being scrambled around. But when your home is a faraway castle surronded by a wind tossed sea on all sides, no travel options were convinient. Her trunk fell through the mirror after her, knocking her down yet again. She hurriedly stood up, pulled on the strap, and made uneasy progress to the dorms. She almost squished a rat, which scurried out of her way. "Sorry." She said. The rat turned around, shaking a little grey fist at her, then, seeming to recognize the girl, squeaked and ran off. Apple frowned. The three pigs scurried by. "Can you help me get the trunk up to the dorms." She asked. At the sound of her voice, the pigs squealed and ran off. She frowned yet again. All throughout her nursery rhyme school years, others made fun of her for being the Evil Queen's daughter, but she wasn't used to causing fear. Her mother warned her it would happen as she got older. Actually, you can't really call this a warning: "Why one day the very sight of you shall cause all living creatures to shake in terror!' With eyes closed and fingers crossed, Apple tried a levitation spell on her trunk. It worked! Sort of. It hovered bumpingly behind her, leaving a shiny trail like a snail's slime. She'd clean that up later. A couple of times it knocked her in the back, causing her to fall on her knees. She found a door marked: ''Apple Queen and Briar Hatter. ''She would have shouted with delight if she hadn't been so mirrorsick. Rooming with her best friend forever after! Boy was she lucky! Briar wasn't there. So Apple collapsed on her bed. She rolled over, sensing a pea under the mattress. Typical orientaiton week prank. She rolled over, found the pea, and threw it across the room. There was a knock at the door. Probably Briar. She could just walk in, but she just loved to knock. "Mirror Travel. I'm begging you please make me laugh." She moaned as she walked up to the door. "Laugh?" A deep musical voice that belonged to Raven White, not Briar Hatter, said. "I need to work on my humor studies. Queens must be skilled in all subjects." "Oh hey Raven. Sorry I thought you were Briar." Apple apologized. Category:Canon Character Fanfiction Category:Work in progress Category:Cerisefan03's Fanfiction